Cairns on Land
Cairns is the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef - cue angelic harp music. But aside from the obvious, what else is there to do when you’re not on a live-aboard?
Wet Tropics of Queensland
Right next to the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Site is it’s lesser known, terrestrial sibling, the Wet Tropics of Queensland. Listed for its unique plants and animals, this biome is the oldest continuously surviving tropical rainforest on the planet.
For a chance to experience the beautiful wet tropics, take a trip to any of these national parks:
Barron Gorge National Park
Black mountain (Kalkajaka) National Park
Cedar Bay National Park
Daintree National Park
Edmund Kennedy National Park
Girringun National Park
Kirrama National Park
Kuranda National Park
Wooroonooran National Park
There are loads of tour companies to take you on an all-day excursions out to some of the closer National Parks. If you have a car, consider embarking on a short road trip around the inland parts of northeastern Australia.
Sky Diving
Kim decided to go skydiving for the first time while we were all in Cairns. She and her sister Sarah jumped out of a plane with the company Skydive Cairns and had an absolute blast. The topography of Cairns is more exciting than you might think, with the ocean close by and the mountains of the National Park very visible just to the north. You even get a chance to see a bit of the Great Barrier Reef from above!
To do a beach landing, you can book with the same company and pay a little extra to have them take you down to Mission Beach.
Remember that you’ll be paying extra for photos and videos if you want it, but our guess is that you definitely will. Sarah even got to jump alongside the photographer for the olympic skydiving team who went up with them that day and got absolutely incredible photos from that.
If you’ve never dived out of the sky before, or diving in the ocean just isn’t your thing, Cairns is an amazing place to do it!
SkyRail
If you’re interested in seeing Queensland from above, but not quite 13,000 feet above, try taking a ride on the SkyRail! This fun gondola ride will take you across the Baron Gorge National Park in about 2 hours. Spend the afternoon strolling around the shops of Kuranda, or grab a coffee at one of the cute cafes along the main drag.
Digs in Cairns
Looking for some groovy dives or a late night in Cairns? Here are a few of our favorites:
The Lillipad Cafe - Cute, hole-in-the-wall hippie restaurant. It takes a long time for your food to come, but holy sh*t it’s so good. Huge portions too!
Bavarian Beerhouse - Our dive crew spent a couple hours drinking them dry. Fun place to start the night with some good beers or cheap liquor.
Rattle N Hum - Another lively bar with great beer options and lots of pub food. The big TV screens fill the walls of this big bar, but the crowds get equally big on almost any night of the week.
Gilligan’s - Right next to the co-owned backpacker’s hostel, Gilligan’s is loud and rowdy every single night of the week. Check their schedule for fun events, and ladies, have your shot at the Tuesday night wet t-shirt competition if you’re running low on cash!
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